Whenever we have an encounter with the Divine, we are changed. Perhaps we are fed with even more than we need as were the 5000 plus folks in our gospel for today. Perhaps we are left limping as was Jacob in our lesson from the Hebrew scriptures. Perhaps we will recognize our vindication as the psalmist does. Perhaps our hearts will be overcome with compassion for others as Paul’s was in our epistle passage. Perhaps we will be changed in some other particular way that we may need in order to grow in the knowledge and love of God, to deepen our relationship with the One who is closer to us than our very own breath.

God created us in God’s own image (Gen.1:26), and over time, we have tarnished that image in every imaginable way. It is God's grace, mercy, and steadfast love that is at work in every encounter, aiming to polish away the tarnish we’ve accumulated, to transform us into the imago dei God created us to be from the beginning. The encounter, however it may come, is not merely for our own personal benefit. Whatever the gift of the encounter with God may be, it is intended to be shared with others (Mt.10:8b), so that others may experience the incarnation of God’s love through us and feel inspired to pass it on.

That is how the circular economy of God’s love works. We are blessed to bless others, who bless others, who bless others, who bless others until all come to rest in the presence of God’s all-consuming love. Each encounter is an invitation to join in the cosmic dance of creative love, the perichoresis of the Trinity, even if, or perhaps especially if, the encounter has left us limping. It is in the intimacy of the divine dance that we may be healed, transformed.